INCREASED LEVELS OF INTERLEUKIN-10 EXPRESSION COMPARED TO INTERLEUKIN-6 IN LEUKOCYTES OF HEALTHY SUBJECTS. COULD IT BE USEFUL IN THE FUTURE OF THE DEPRESSION DIAGNOSIS?

Abstract

It is a well known, that the physical activity promotes mental health. Physically active people relatively rarely suffer from psychosomatic and depressive disorders. It is possible that the differences in gene activity in peripheral blood leukocytes may be associated with depression, especially genes participating in inflammatory response. Thus, the aim of our study was to investigate the levels of IL6 and IL10 mRNA and IL10/IL6 ratio in peripheral blood leukocytes in healthy, physically active individuals. One hundred healthy young men (20-23 years old) participated in this study. All of them declared regular physical activity. Participants were non-smokers, and consumed alcohol occasionally. To access genes expression, 2 ml of venous blood was collected. RNA isolation was performed and then the relative expression of IL6 and IL10 was calculated using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (Q-RT-PCR). Pro and anti-inflammatory balance was calculated as 2^relative of IL10/ 2^relative expression of IL6. Low expression of tested genes was found in healthy young men. Mean expression for IL6 was 2^0.051 (n=90) and for IL10 2^0.08 (n=98). Mean ratio IL10/IL6 was 2^1.58. Higher expression of IL10 compared to IL6 may be essential not only for the physical performance but also for the mental health. Diverse reports in the literature may be associated with choosing various control groups, i.e. sedentary or older individuals. It is possible, that measuring the expression of IL6 and IL10 (especially the ratio IL10/IL6) in peripheral blood leukocytes may be useful in the assessment of depressive disorders. Thus, molecular study of active young men can confirm the need for physical activity among people suffering from depression, but further studies are needed, particularly among people with psychosomatic disorders.